Missouri lawmaker demands explanation for stalled program

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri lawmaker is demanding to know why a program that would pay parents of disabled children to care for them at home hasn’t yet started. Sen. Brian Williams, a University City Democrat, wrote to Budget Director Dan Haug on Thursday, saying he has “yet to receive a clear answer” for the delay. The Kansas City Star reports that the initiative, which has won approval from lawmakers, is designed to help families of Missouri children with severe disabilities or conditions that qualify them for nursing services at home. Even before the pandemic exacerbated a nationwide nursing shortage, the care was hard to find.